Four Garrisons of Anxi

The Four Garrisons of Anxi (Chinese安西 四 镇/安西 四 镇, Pinyin Anxi Sizhen, W.-G. Anhsi Szuchen ) were garrison troops of the Tang Dynasty 648-658 in different cities and the capital of the Indo- European small states Kucha, Khotan, Kashgar and Karashahr had been stationed. The capital city of Kucha was also the headquarters of the " Protectorate General to the pacification of the West". The troops stationed here came from the heartland of the Tang dynasty itself

History

The system of the four garrisons was applied for the first time in the year 648, when the opponent's small states were defeated in the Tarim Basin. 651 the troops were withdrawn under the Turkish prince Ashina Helu until the conquest of Su Ding Fang in 657 for a short time again.

The greatest adversary of the Tang in consolidating its rule over the region were the Tibetans attacked repeatedly since 662 and the area occupied in the period 670-692, only briefly interrupted by advances of the Tang in the years 675, 679, 682 and 686

679 another fortified camp in the vicinity of Chui He was built in Suyab, which later Karashahr as one of the four garrisons replaced until the Turkesh conquered it 719. After the final victory over the Tibetans in 692, the four garrisons remained up to an eight-month occupation of Kucha by the members of the Turkic peoples in the year 709 in the hands of the Tang Until 791 the Tang were able to keep the garrisons, although most of the regular prefectures fell into the hands of the Tibetans in the surrounding Hexi Corridor, such as Liangzhou ( 764 ), Ganzhou, Suzhou ( 766 ) Guazhou ( 776 ), Yizhou (781) and Shazhou ( 787). In the year 791 the four garrisons were eventually captured along with the Protectorate General to the pacification of the West by Tibetan soldiers.